6w ago - While it is currently rumored that Sony will unveil PlayStation 4 later this month of in early May, today PS4Daily (linked above) reports that while the PS4 will ship with 8GB of GDDR5 memory, developers will only have access to 7GB of RAM.

Below are the details, to quote: "The PlayStation 4 will ship with a massive 8 GB of GDDR5 memory, which is a huge upgrade compared to the current generation consoles. However, according to a PlayStation 4 developer PS4Daily spoke to, they have access to “only” 7 GB of RAM. The remaining 1 GB is reserved for the operating system and background tasks.

Sony showcased a lot of PlayStation 4 features during the unveiling in February. This includes deep social features running in the background, new sharing options where players can watch each other play, and background downloading of games. All this chews up quite a bit of memory. Still, having access to 7 GB of super-fast GDDR5 memory is a lot better than the 512 MB in the PS3.

Sony originally shipped dev kits to third party developers with only 4 GB RAM, and kept the true RAM amount secret from third party developers in order to keep it secret from Microsoft as well. Developers...

7w ago - Just days after Sony officially launched the PS4 Web site, according to a rumor from PC Magazine (linked above) they are now planning a big PlayStation 4 reveal prior to E3 in April or early May 2013.

Below are the purported details, to quote: "Sony already revealed some PlayStation 4 specs at a February event in which the company unveiled the console's controller (pictured) and a stereo camera with motion capture capabilities, but not, to the chagrin of gamers everywhere, the PS4 itself.

But Sony may be parceling out information about its coming game console to build up buzz, according to the source. Some industry watchers anticipated another reveal or at least some PS4 news at last week's Game Developer Conference, but the company only tipped some details about the underlying hardware, Ars Technica reported.

GDC was probably the last big stage for the company to talk up the successor to the PlayStation 3 before the E3 gaming conference in June, unless Sony manufactures its own event. That's precisely what Sony plans to do, according to the source, who said late April/early May will be the likeliest timeframe for a full-blown launch of the PS4.

Microsoft,...

12w ago - Today Kotaku reports that Sony's PlayStation 4 / PS4 console is rumored to use real names for online gaming.

Below are the details, to quote: "Among the bits of information dropped during last week's PlayStation 4 announcement was this from PS4 lead architect Mark Cerny, as he discussed the system's enhanced social features:

"With the PlayStation 4 we are transitioning to a friends network based on real world friends. We'll keep around the alias and icon used in today's multiplayer matches. These are great to have when anonymity is important. But most of the new social dimension to PS4 will be interacting with friends using real names and profile pictures most likely seeded from your existing social network."

Some crucial-sounding words in there: "Alias." "Real names." "Profile pictures." "Anonymity." But what exactly does all that mean? Like so many other things introduced at the PS4 event, it's not entirely clear.

Since its inception, the PlayStation Network has for the most part been a gateway to buying content and a loose way to connect with your friends to play games. But Sony appears set to turn their service into much more of a "proper" social network. And parts of that social network are going to involve your real name.

Let's scrounge for crumbs of information...

13w ago - Following up on the PlayStation Cloud news, today Kotaku reports that according to their sources the PS4 / Orbis console will be out this November, and purportedly users will be able to control it with a phone.

Below are the rumor details, to quote: "A reliable Kotaku source has informed us that the PlayStation 4, codenamed Orbis, will be out this November in the United States.

Our source - the same reliable source who back in early 2012 told us the codename for Sony's next console and the codename for Microsoft's next console - tells us that there are two models planned for the new machine, and that pricing won't be announced until later this year, possibly around E3. The current plan, our source says, is to release them at $429 and $529, but that could change.

Although nothing is confirmed just yet, as we get closer and closer to the release of Orbis, which Sony is expected to officially announce during an event in New York City tomorrow night, we continue to hear more details about what will ship with the new hardware. Back in January, we learned about the PS4's new controller, which has a small touchpad in the center, and the fancy new user account system that will allow...

14w ago - Following up on Sony's previous announcement, today rumors of a PlayStation Vita 4G design, PS Vita Firmware update and price cut have surfaced from PatentBolt.com (linked above).

Below are the details, as follows: "On February 7, 2013, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Sony that is technically about the PlayStation Vita and their new and upcoming connectors.

Sony states that the connectors are for "connecting the electronic apparatus to peripheral apparatuses" at the bottom and side surfaces of the device housing. Sony's patent filing specifically states that the next generation PS Vita will gain USB, HDMI and a power supply connector described as a parallelepiped connector.

New Ports Coming to Sony's PS Vita

As shown in Sony's patent FIG. 2, the electronic apparatus 1 in this example includes connectors 23, 24, 25, 39, and 59 as the plural electronic components. The connector 23 is, for example, a headphone jack.

The connectors 24, 25, and 39 are connectors such as a USB connector or an HDMI connector for transmitting and receiving data between the electronic apparatus 1 and other electronic apparatuses....